


Skipping Town

by Brumeier



Series: Bite Sized Fic [124]
Category: The Sentinel
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Episode Tag, Episode: s04e08 The Sentinel by Blair Sandburg, Friendship, M/M, Pre-Slash, Prompt Fill
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-09
Updated: 2016-11-09
Packaged: 2018-08-30 00:10:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8511259
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brumeier/pseuds/Brumeier
Summary: LJ Comment Fic for Traveling prompt: author's choice, author's choice, skipping town
In which Blair decides that the best thing for everyone is if he just leaves town, and Jim has his own ideas about that.





	

Blair took one last look around the loft, his heart heavy. He was leaving the only place that had ever felt like home to him, the only place in a lifetime of itinerant living that he’d started putting down roots. Maybe he’d been fighting his own genetic makeup.

Sandburgs were born for leaving, to paraphrase a song. It had never hurt as much as it did this time.

He felt like a heel, leaving without saying goodbye to Jim. But what could he say that he hadn’t already? That he was sorry? That he’d never intended to do anything to hurt Jim, or his reputation as a detective? The he loved the work he did with CPD but there was no way he could be a cop?

Blair shook off his regrets and picked up his duffle bag. He was doing the right thing. Jim didn’t need him anymore, and if he left the whole fiasco could be written off as just another ill-advised trip to the Sandburg Zone. No harm, no foul.

He left his key on the kitchen counter and had to take a steadying breath before he could step out into the hall and close the door behind him. Another chapter of his life over, and nothing but an uncertain future looming ahead of him. Time to get back to basics.

As Blair rode the elevator down to the first floor he ran through his checklist one last time. He’d sold the Volvo to a friend for cash, and had a bus ticket in his pocket that would take him to Indiana. Aunt Sal and Uncle Bobby had offered to put him up for as long as he needed, for which he was grateful. Once he had some distance he was sure he could work out what he needed to do next.

Turning in his ride-along credentials to Vera in Human Resources had been almost as hard as walking out of the loft. But he’d done it, and left an effusive thank you letter to Simon and the rest of Major Crimes for everything they’d done for him over the years. 

He had another letter in the duffle to mail to Jim once he was well and truly away. It had been impossible to put into words everything he felt for the man, professionally and personally, but hopefully he’d been able to explain his reasons for leaving well enough. Jim would be hurt, sure – even after all these years he had issues with perceived abandonment – but eventually he’d understand.

Jim was a good detective, he could read the writing on the wall. He’d carry on, maybe be angry for a little while, maybe a bit relieved, but Jim always…Jim always…

Jim was in the parking lot, leaning against the side of his truck with his arms crossed and his cane lying across the hood.

“Going somewhere, Chief?”

Blair felt an unexpected rush of relief. Jim wasn’t going to let him sneak away, would probably try to talk him into staying. And while Blair still had every intention of leaving, he hadn’t realized how much he wanted someone to ask him not to.

“You should know better than to try and pull one over on a Sentinel.”

Blair shrugged. “And here I thought I was being stealthy.”

“Sandburg, you are the last person anyone could accuse of being stealthy.”

He grinned, like he was meant to, but the truth was that Blair was going to miss the easy back-and-forth he had with Jim. The jokes, the teasing, everything that had been missing in the last couple of weeks. Well, if he was being honest with himself, it had been missing since that day at the fountain.

“You driving me to the bus station?”

“You think it’s that easy?” Jim countered. “To just walk away from everything?”

By ‘everything’ he clearly meant ‘me’.

“It’s not,” Blair replied honestly. “The right thing isn’t always easy, Jim. But that doesn’t make it any less right.”

“I thought that’s what you’d say.” Jim nodded, and grabbed hold of his cane. He swung it around and tapped the side of the truck. “Put your bag in.”

Blair tried to hide his disappointment. He really had hoped Jim would ask him to stay. Well, everything was still probably too fresh, too close to the surface. Jim needed time to process, and Blair could certainly get behind that. 

He started to toss his bag into the bed of the truck, and then froze. There was already a bag in there, Jim’s old Army duffle that still had his name stamped on the side.

“Jim? You going somewhere?”

“Wherever you are.”

Blair was sure he’d heard that wrong. He dropped his bag into the truck and turned to look at Jim, who was looking back at him with a completely impassive, unreadable expression on his face.

“You want to run that by me again?”

“I’m going wherever you are,” Jim repeated. He rocked the cane back and forth. “If my Guide thinks we need some distance then we get some distance.”

“We?” Blair was certain he had an idiotic expression on his face, but he couldn’t seem to make sense of what Jim was trying to say. “You can’t leave. Jim, this is your _home_.”

“This is just a place,” Jim said. And the look he gave Blair was full of affection. “You’re my home.”

With that he moved around the driver’s side of the truck and climbed in, leaving Blair staring at him through the passenger window. Jim made a hurry-up motion with his hand.

Blair got in and buckled up, not trusting himself to speak. Once again Jim had surprised him. Instead of asking Blair to stay, or angrily pushing him away, Jim was going with the flow. It was very un-Ellison behavior.

“Officially,” Jim said as he turned the key and started the engine. “It’s a leave of absence. Gives us time to figure out what’s next.”

Us. We. Blair’s throat was tight. “Sounds good, partner.”

He didn’t bother looking back as they drove away. Turned out he wasn’t leaving his home behind after all.

**Author's Note:**

>  **AN:** It’s been a while since I felt compelled to write in this fandom. But I saw this prompt, literally right after I finished reading [AnnieB’s](http://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnieB/pseuds/AnnieB) [new Sentinel fic](http://annieb1955.livejournal.com/139164.html?thread=1090204#t1090204), and the stars aligned. I’ve read tags to TSbyBS where Blair leaves town, or Jim leaves town, but I don’t know if I’ve read anything where they both leave together. So…here it is. ::grins::


End file.
